


A Week in the Woods

by Em_313



Category: Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Adaptive Summer Camp, Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, Brotherly Love, F/M, Gen, Modern AU, Modern Era, Physical Disability, Protective Jack is protective, Race plays with children, Self-Insert, Summer Camp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:21:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24209626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Em_313/pseuds/Em_313
Summary: 11-year-old Charlie never knew a disabled foster kid like him could end up at summer camp.  When he gets the chance, he doesn't know what to think.Jack's best friend Race roped him into being a camp counselor. Though he enjoys the time to unplug in the woods (and flirting with the lifeguards), he's worried he's bitten off more responsibility than he can chew. But when he meets a fellow foster kid in Oak Cabin, he knows they're in for an unforgettable summer.
Relationships: Jack Kelly/Katherine Plumber
Comments: 24
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [writermegs17](https://archiveofourown.org/users/writermegs17/gifts).



**Sunday - Check In Day**

_Welcome to Camp!_ The pastel sidewalk chalk announced. Jack poked at the exclamation mark with the toe of his tennis shoe. He and the other counselors sat on benches at the edge of the parking lot, waiting as a line of cars rolled slowly up the hill. Their matching green shirts were already sticky with sweat.

A beat up grey minivan parked in the middle of the lot, and the passenger door flew open. A little boy climbed out slowly, put a backpack on his shoulders, then situated his crutches on his forearms. He was maybe 10 or 11, Jack thought, with a mop of blonde hair. The tall woman with him popped the trunk, unloaded a manual wheelchair, and stuck a suitcase in the seat.

Christian, the skinny lifeguard who’d gotten stuck with parking lot duty, rushed over. He introduced himself to the pair, then shouted to the counselors, “This is Charlie from Oak Cabin!”

Jack and a dozen other counselors leapt to their feet. “O-Oak cabin! O-Oak cabin!” They chanted, clapping their hands.

“Hi, Charlie,” Jack grinned and stuck out his hand. “My name is Jack. Let me help ya with your bag here.” He took Charlie’s backpack. “Need a wagon for your stuff?”

“Um…” Charlie looked to the woman pushing his wheelchair.

“No, I think we’ve got it.” She said. She smiled at Jack and set her sunglasses on her head. “I’m Laura, Charlie’s foster mom.”

“Nice to meet ya. I’m Jack. I’ll be one of Charlie’s cabin counselors this week.”

They walked up a sunny sidewalk to the main building as they talked, following a small crowd of other counselors, campers, and families. “Is this your first time at camp?”

“Yeah,” Charlie said. “I...I’m kind of nervous.”

“I’ll tell ya a secret, kid,” Jack said. “This is my first year at camp, too, and I was real nervous my first week. But soon we’ll be having so much fun you won’t even think of it. What are you most nervous about?”

“I...I dunno. Meeting a lot of new people, mostly, I think.”

Jack nodded. He pulled open the door to the dining hall. There were maybe 6 families ahead of them for check-in, snaked around the edge of the room, talking with various staff members at the tables that lined the walls. Campers had just started to arrive, though all the staff had been up for hours. There was a boy with crutches just like Charlie’s. A teenage boy with Down Syndrome sat on the floor, watching something on an IPad. Sunshine streamed over the shiny wooden tables and floors.

Laura rummaged around in her purse for a piece of gum as she looked around. “This is where you’ll eat, Charlie,” she said. “It’s a pretty room.” Charlie nodded. In front of them, a pair of preteen girls squealed and hugged -- the reunion of a wheelchair basketball team. “How’s the food?” Laura asked Jack.

It was pretty shitty, and less than a month into the summer Jack was already tired of the same rotation of tasteless meals, but he couldn’t say that.

“Pretty good,” he said. “The best night is hobo meals over the campfire -- potatoes, sausage, cheese, salsa. Stuff like that.”

“Ooh, that sounds good!” Laura said with too much enthusiasm. She laid her hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “You like Mexican food. You’ll like that.”

They snaked slowly through the line, as more people came behind them. Laura filled out paperwork and talked to directors and nutritionists about Charlie’s needs and strengths and weaknesses. Charlie stood still, taking it all in. Jack stifled a yawn. Week 3 had barely begun, and he was already tired.

“So, what grade are you in, kiddo?” Jack asked.

“I’ll be in fifth,” he said.

They arrived at yet another table, where a bubbly lifeguard shook Charlie’s hand, then Laura’s.

“Do you like to swim, Charlie?”

“Yes,” he said.

“Can you swim by yourself, or do you need some help?”

“Charlie’s a fish!” Laura said.

“How much do we get to go to the pool?” Charlie asked Jack as they meandered towards the nurses’ table. The last station, but always the longest.

“At least once. You can go on challenge day, too, if you want to. And we’ll go to the lake at some point, too. We can canoe, ride a big boat, swim. You like to swim?”

Charlie nodded. “The place I lived before—one of my old foster homes--had a pool. I miss it,” he said. “It’s easier to walk in the pool.” “Is it?” Jack asked. “Neat.”

The three of them sat across from Nurse Allie. Jack had to listen to this part. He rubbed his hands on his shorts as Laura explained Charlie’s medicines and needs. Cerebral palsy stiffened the muscles of his legs and hips; his balance was poor. “He’s a pretty healthy kid,” she said. “The sleep med is the only one that’s really essential.”

“Have troubling sleeping, huh?” Allie asked Charlie, who shrugged. Jack nodded. He knew what that was like.

They finally got through their interrogation and paraded down the shady sidewalks to Oak Cabin.

…

The first dinner was always chaotic. Jack could barely keep track of everyone’s names, let alone who needed help with what.

Oak Cabin had 8 boys: Jace, 11, and Ben, 9, both had spina bifida, both played wheelchair basketball, and had been bunkmates the summer before. Everyone else was new: 9-year-old Joey was petite, hilarious, and obsessed with all animals. Marcus had Down Syndrome; he was 10. He and Finn, 11, were already arguing about superheroes. Race, Jack’s best friend, served the boys each a dry chicken breast.

Emily, their cabin head, was at the head of the table, testing TJ’s blood sugar. TJ held his fork in his other hand. “Jack,” she said. “Help Connor cut up his food, please.”

Jack was wrestling with the flaps of Charlie’s carton of chocolate milk. He blinked stupidly. “Who’s Connor?”

Em rolled her eyes under her glasses. “Hey, Connor!” she said. A little boy in a wheelchair sitting on the other side of Charlie looked up. Jack wondered if he’d ever keep these kids straight. Too many little blondies. TJ and Marcus were Black, and Jace had thick, dark hair with the tips colored blue. But the others were blurring together.

Jack, Race, and the other counselors cut food, poured water, wiped spills, and snuck bites of their own bland food, which they slathered in Frank’s hot sauce to give it any flavor at all.

“Spiderman is definitely better than Batman!” Finn said. He had ranch on his chin.

“Nuh-uh!” Marcus said.

This was at least the fourth time they’d had this exact conversation.

Jack turned to Charlie, who was picking at his food, “What do you think, kid?” he said. “Spiderman or Batman?”

Charlie smiled and shook his head. “Superman.”

After dinner was opening program at the amphitheater, with a thick cloud of bug spray in the fading light, and goofy skits and camp songs lead by a group of counselors on stage. Campers trickled up to join them, but most of Oak Cabin’s newbies hung back.

Jack looked down the line of boys and counselors. They were getting easier to tell apart. Caroline, one of the lifeguards, grabbed Connor’s hands and danced. Connor laughed and laughed. Jace clapped along, and TJ and Finn jumped up and down with the art teacher, Lexi.

Tori, the evening program lead, grabbed a mic. “Let’s see who we have here tonight!?” She yelled. She was wearing huge pink plastic sunglasses and a green feather boa.

“Boys, when they say Oak Cabin, we gotta get really loud, okay?” Em said.

“Charlotte Cabin!” Tori yelled and pointed to the oldest girls, who cheered. Kat, the cute lifeguard, clapped and laughed with one of her campers.

“Raymond Cabin!” Middle girls. They cheered. Little girls’ cabin. Oldest boys’. Middle boys’. They were going to be last.

“Oh-oh-Oak Cabin!” Tori yelled.

“That’s us!” Emily jumped to her feet, pulling Joey up with her. Jack and the boys cheered and clapped.

“We’re soooo glad you’re all here.” Tori cheered. “Let’s do another ditty! This is a repeat after me song!”

“This a repeat after me song!” Everyone replied.

“YOU can’t ride in my little red wagon!”

“YOU can’t ride in my little red wagon!” Kids pointed at each other and laughed.

“Cause the front wheel’s broken and the axel’s dragging!”

“Cause the front wheel’s broken and the axel’s dragging!”

“Chugga! Chugga! Chugga chugga chugga!” Everyone stomped their feet and moved their arms like a train. Jace and Ben did wheelies.

“Second verse? Same as the first, but a little bit louder and a little bit worse!”

Jack grinned and nudged Charlie, “Louder! You ready, kid?”

The words were the same and the kids were louder and louder. Jack and Race pointed at each other, stomped their feet, and shouted their voices raw.

“CHUGGA! CHUGGA!” Jack stomped towards Charlie and Finn. “CHUGGA CHUGGA CHUGGA!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gahh okay! I'm so excited about this one! I know the first chapter isn't the greatest. This is heavily inspired by my work as a camp counselor at a camp for kids with disabilities in the summers of 2015 and 16. I learned so much from working there and made incredible memories, and I just had to put my favorite newsboys in one of my favorite places! (And, yes, I made myself Jack's boss). Let me know what you think! More to come!


	2. Chapter 2

**Monday**

The grey, heavy clouds that had been creeping across the sky all morning finally opened up. 

“Shoot!” Emily muttered, ripping her blue hearing aids from her ears and shoving them into her jacket pocket. One hand still rested on the handle of Connor’s wheelchair; the steep hill up from the music building was too hard for him to push himself. “Where’s Joey?” She looked up the path. “Hearing aids aren’t waterproof. Someone get Joey’s aids out.”

“I do _not_ like rain. I do _not_ like rain.” Finn fretted. Race offered his hand, but Finn slapped him away. 

“Keep walking, buddy,” Race prompted. 

Katie paused under a dripping tree and helped Joey take out his hearing aids, zipping them into a side pocket of her backpack. She walked between Joey and TJ, holding their hands, and Marcus charged in front of them. None of them seemed bothered by the drizzle. Jack was towards the back of the group, walking with Ben and Charlie. 

“I do _not_ like rain!” Finn yelled. 

“I think it feels good,” Jack said. A humid breeze blew through the trees.

“Me, too,” Charlie said. “I like listening to the thunder...seeing how far it is.”

“How do you do that?” Ben asked, bumping over a stray stick. 

“You count the number of seconds between the thunder and the lightning,” Jack said. “Every second is 1 mile.” 

“Isn’t it every 4 seconds?” Charlie said. He was panting a little. 

“I don’t remember,” Jack said. “My dad taught me a long time ago.” 

“You should ask your dad again,” Ben said. “See which way’s right.” 

Jack didn’t tell him he couldn’t; he could never tell this pack of boys that his strong, invincible dad died of a heart attack when Jack was just 11. 

“You a’right?” Jack looked to Charlie. His pace had slowed; he should’ve brought his wheelchair. 

“Yeah,” he said. “We’re almost back, right?” 

“Yeah,” Jack said. The asphalt path widened and the woods thinned out. They were maybe 30 feet from their cabin. Then thunder rumbled. The downpour started. 

Connor shrieked, and Finn howled. The kids who could _ran_ , Katie and Race pulling the boys by the hands. Marcus stomped in a mud puddle. 

Rain dripped down Jack’s face; Charlie’s hair was stuck to his forehead. Another counselor, Finch, came to push Ben’s chair. Em and Connor flew past them. Charlie stumbled, but didn’t fall. 

“We ain’t in a hurry, Charlie,” Jack said. He brushed the rain out of his eyes. “We’ll bring your chair tomorrow.” 

Charlie sighed. “I’m okay.” He said immediately. 

They were the last to arrive at the cabin, where everyone was dripping, cold, and annoyed. Connor stomped his feet against the foot pedals of his chair, Finn was crying, and Ben had taken his shirt off. Counselors wiped the mud from Marcus’ legs, towel-dried the boys’ hair, and set towels in the seats of their wheelchairs. 

Em piled her dripping blonde curls into a sloppy bun on top of her head, then tossed a towel to Jack. “You want your chair, Charlie?” She asked too loudly. Her hearing aids were still tucked away, Jack figured. 

“I’ll just sit here.” He said, easing himself into a chair at the table. (The cabin opened to a day room with a table and chairs and an unused fireplace, with a large sliding door to the camper bedroom and bathrooms to the left, and a smaller door to the staff bedroom straight ahead.) Jack handed him the towel, and Charlie mopped at his face and neck. Jack’s clothes were stuck to him, socks squelching inside his hot sneakers, but he had to get the kids settled before he could change. 

In the camper’s bedroom, Finn still whimpered, and Joey was standing on the back of Ben’s wheelchair as they chased Jace, who had TJ in his lap. “Boys!” Em snapped. “That is not safe,” She added more patiently. “We do not play with or stand on others’ wheelchairs at camp.” 

“I told him he could!” Ben whined. 

Em shook her head. “No. And go put a shirt on.” 

The counselors got everyone as dry and calm as they could as the rain continued to beat against the roof. Emily dropped a pack of UNO cards and a couple of board games into the living room, then disappeared into the staff bedroom for her break. Jack’s socks were still wet, but he started dealing cards as the boys gathered around the table. 

“At least it rained after we went to the pool,” Charlie said. 

_Oh, God. The pool was just today._ Jack thought. Each day was so packed with activities, it felt like a week. 

Just a few hours earlier, they’d all bounced around in the shallow end. 

Half of the boys had taken to calling Race “Dad”, and they chased him around, splashing and squealing. Finn was on Race’s shoulders. 

“Me next! Me next!” Ben chanted, reaching for Race’s arm. 

“What?” Race let go of Finn’s legs and dumped him backwards into the water. “Uh-oh! Where’d Finn go?” 

“My turn! My turn!” Joey begged. Finn’s fair head popped out of the water, giggling. 

Connor floated around in an inner tube with Em and Katie. Jace was paralyzed from the waist down, so he hung onto Finch for support in the deep end. The two of them were teaching Marcus to dive for rings. TJ, the youngest and the smallest, was the only hesitant one. He wasn’t scared of the water, but he didn’t know how to swim, either, so he and Jack sat on the stairs together, _beep-beeping_ little plastic boats and inhaling the chlorine. 

Then there was Charlie. Charlie swam laps. Blue goggles stuck to his face as he dove under the water, slithered under and around his friends, and popped back up on the other side. Then he took a deep breath and did it again. And again. His little hand broke the surface first as he reached the wall near Jack. 

“Hey!” Jack called as Charlie rose to the surface. “You’re pretty good.” 

“Sp-lash!” Joey shouted as Race dipped Ben into the water. The boys roared with laugher. 

“Me?” Charlie said, looking at Jack. 

“Yeah, _you_.” 

“I...I told ya I like to swim,” Charlie said. He pushed his goggles up on his head and shook his wet hair out like a dog. Then he smiled. “Watch this.” 

“I’m watching,” Jack promised. 

Charlie let go of the wall and took confident, straight steps towards Jack. “Can you see me? Look! No hands! Flat feet and everything!” 

Water was magic, Jack had noticed. Ben could walk in the shallow end, too, and Connor’s tight limbs relaxed. His fisted hands unfurled and his legs kicked freely as the counselors helped steer his tube. 

“Good job!” Jack smiled. Charlie took 8 or 10 more steps, grinning to himself, then sat down on the step below TJ, the water rising up his bare chest. 

“Why don’t ya go play with the guys?” Jack said. “Race’ll throw you around too, if you want.” 

Charlie shook his head. “Nah.” 

“Or join the guys diving for rings?” Jack pointed. “That looks fun.” 

“No, thanks,” Charlie said quietly. “I like to swim alone.” He paused and gently splashed a boat back to TJ. “I...I don’t think about anything when I’m swimming. Ya know? It’s...relaxing.” 

Jack nodded. That was how he felt about drawing. “Okay.” he said. Charlie repositioned his goggles and dipped back beneath the surface.

Katherine was their lifeguard today. Her red bathing suit clung to her. She wore her auburn hair in a high, bouncy ponytail, and big, round sunglasses that looked too nice to bring to camp. 

They’d met during staff training a month ago. Kat was a journalism major hungry for adventure. “My parents are _pissed_ I’m not doing something related to my major,” she’d told Jack and Race, laughing. “But who says this won’t teach us a ton?” 

Her laser focus found Jack staring and she smiled. 

**…**

Even at nearly ten pm, their work wasn’t done. Em dropped a stack of folders and a handful of pens onto the table of the day room. “Can you guys start paperwork, please?” She said. Jack and Race reached for pens. “Ben’s finishing up in the restroom with Katie. I’m going to get TJ settled--he’s feeling a little homesick--and then we should be good for lights out. Joey’s asleep already.”

Evenings meant showering paint and poop and sweat from tired kids, then still having to mop the bathroom after they went to bed. Campers’ logs had to be filled in--daily records for parents and the nursing staff. The boys flipped open folders. A couple other counselors joined them, some still in running shorts and t-shirts, some in pajamas. 

Emily stood at the doorway between the day room and the camper bedroom with her hand on the light switch, “Good night, boys. 3, 2, 1.” The light went out, and Em slid the door closed. She looked towards the table of counselors, crossing her fingers for an easy night. 

She disappeared into the staff bedroom and emerged a minute later with her arms full of junk food. She dropped a family-sized package of Oreos and a bag of popcorn onto the table, then sat down next to Jack. “Alright,” She said, grabbing herself an Oreo. “How was today?” 

“When ‘Dynamite’ came on after lunch, Ben and Jace insisted it was an oldie,” Caroline said. “So _that_ made me feel frickin' ancient.” 

Everyone laughed and groaned. At 19, Jack and Race were among the youngest cabin staff. Art teacher Lexi was the oldest, and she was only about 25.

“Ugh,” Em said. “I guess when you’re 10, a song from 2008 _is_ an oldie.” 

“The rain sucked,” Race said, and everyone echoed their agreement. 

Everyone passed around their snacks and camper forms, stretching their tired limbs and unpacking the day’s moments: Joey told everyone who would listen that otters have a favorite rock; Jace was stubborn and liked to start petty arguments; Connor had a small seizure on the way to lunch--frightening but harmless; Em was trying to teach Marcus to tie his shoes. Another cabin head was being a diva. The “finished” stack of folders grew in the center of the table, and one by one everyone stood up to shower, call home, or pass out in their bunk beds for a few hours. 

“By the way, Jack’s on primary tonight,” Em said, standing up. 

“Oh,” Jack said flatly. “Okay.” It was his turn to stay in the camper bedroom and check on everyone every couple hours. 

Emily balanced the folders and snacks in her arms as she gave Jack instructions: TJ needed his blood sugar tested, five of their boys needed help getting to the bathroom if they needed it, at least three of them had issues sleeping. “Good luck,” She said, crossing her fingers again. “Wake me up if you need _anything_.” 

“G’night,” Jack nodded. 

He crept into the dark camper bedroom, climbed into an empty top bunk, and set his phone alarms:

_1 am_

_3am_

_5am_

_7 am_

Not that he'd sleep much anyways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We'll cut it off here. Next chapter we'll see how Jack's overnight goes! Charlie is still quiet and closed off, but maybe that will change :) Hope this doesn't feel too bogged down with camp-y details. Reliving it like this is fun for me, but I can also pick up the pace of the plot. Let me know! <3


	3. Chapter 3

The first alarm buzzed just as he closed his eyes. Jack quickly silenced his phone, stumbled off his bunk, found his flashlight, and began tiptoeing around the beds. Everyone was sleeping peacefully. So far, so good. 

TJ was at the far end of the room, on the bottom bunk under Finn. He laid on his stomach, breathing deeply. Jack knelt down next to the bed and felt around in TJ’s red backpack for his blood sugar meter. Jack remembered all the steps to set it up, and the little boy didn’t awaken or even flinch when Jack pricked his finger.  _ 5...4...3... _ Jack yawned _...BEEP!  _ TJ’s blood sugar was high, but not high enough to call the nurses. Jack sighed and set his hand on the edge of the bed. He sniffed...yup, the sheets were wet. 

As quietly as he could, Jack retrieved clean clothes and blankets then gently shook TJ awake. 

“Hey, kid,” Jack whispered. “Ya had an accident. Can ya get up a minute for me? We’ll be quick. Promise.” 

TJ stumbled out of bed. “Sorry ‘bout dat,” he muttered. 

“It’s okay,” Jack said. “No biggie.” TJ stood sleepily at the foot of the bed as Jack changed his sheets. He put the wet things in a trash bag and made a mental note to take it to the laundry room in the morning. TJ flopped back into bed and pulled up the covers.

“Good night, kiddo,” Jack whispered. He stifled another yawn and began stumbling back across the room. 

Jace and Ben were asleep, wheelchairs parked side by side between their beds. Connor, Joey, Marcus...asleep. So close to a couple more hours of rest. 

Charlie was sitting up in bed, facing away from Jack, staring. 

“Charlie,” Jack whispered. Charlie jumped. “You okay?” 

“Yeah,” he said quickly. “Fine.” 

Jack hovered at the foot of the bed. All of the camper bunks were painted red. “Need anything?” 

Charlie hesitated. “Can I, uh, can I get some water?” 

“Of course,” Jack said. He retrieved Charlie’s water bottle from his wheelchair and filled it from the sink in the large shared bathroom. 

Jack handed it to him. “It ain’t cold,” he apologized. 

“Don’t matter.” Charlie took a long drink. “Thanks.” 

“Can I...mind if I sit?” Charlie nodded. Jack sat at the foot of his bed, the vinyl mattress squeaking underneath him. “You alright?” 

“Yeah,” he said. “I...I don’t know. Not like I got a problem being away from home or anything.” 

“You lived with Laura long?” 

“Um...a year, almost. I was at the same school all year this year.” 

Jack nodded. He knew what a big deal that was. 

Charlie took another pull from his water bottle. “I’m not homesick,” he said again. “Just...it’s weird. I...I been so many places, and this is another new place.” 

“Every place has a different smell, ya know?” 

Charlie gasped. “It does!” 

The different scents were most of what stuck in Jack’s memories from the first couple of months after his dad died. His parents’ old friends didn’t have room for him, but took him in anyways: a day or two here, another there, a week or two on someone else’s couch. He rubbed his hands on his knees; even with the AC it was stuffy. “I, uh, I was a foster kid, too,” he said. 

“Really?” 

“Really,” he said. “Stayed with my mom’s best friend for a while. They had a bunch of cats and their house just smelled like a litter box.” 

“Ew!” Charlie giggled. 

“I lived with the same lady all through high school. Miss Medda.” Jack smiled. “Her house smells like her fancy perfume.” 

Charlie thought for a moment. “When I first got to Laura’s I thought her house smelled like...dog food. And...and pasta sauce. She’s a real good cook.” 

Jack chuckled. “Medda’s not.” 

They didn’t ask the other’s story; they both knew better than that. They were quiet for a minute, staring into the dim light across the other bunks. 

“What’s camp smell like?” Jack asked. 

“Bug spray,” Charlie said immediately. “And--and...nature. Trees. And we still smell like the pool.” 

Jack nodded. “Yeah. Buncha sweaty kids.” 

Charlie smiled. Then he said, “Hey, you...don’t have to stay up with me. I’m alright.”

“Sure?”

“Yeah,” Charlie handed his water bottle to Jack, then used his arms to scoot and lay back down. “I’ll go back to sleep soon. I swear.”

“Okay.” Jack nodded. “Wake me up if you need anything, alright?” 

“Okay,” Charlie said.

Jack climbed back in his bunk and took one more look over the silhouetted boys. He rolled over to face the wood-paneled wall and fumbled for his phone. 

_ Jack: love you  _

He watched the bar creep slowly, slowly across the top of the screen. The reply came just a minute later. 

_ Medda: love you too. It’s late...you okay? _

_ Jack: yeah. I’m on night shift tonight. I’ll try to call you on my break tomorrow.  _

_ medda: okay baby. Try to  _ _ sleep.  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluffier than I intended but I just love Jack and Medda’s relationship in the show. Thanks for reading 💛


	4. Chapter 4

**Tuesday**

Ben was the first one up the rock wall. All the boys, secured in harnesses and brightly-colored helmets, gathered at the edge of the path to watch. 

“On belay?” Ben called. 

The adventure challenge team tugged at their ropes. “Belay on.” 

“Climbing?” 

“Climb on!” 

The sun beat down on the wide, open field. There was no breeze and no shade out here, just the soaring, intimidating rock wall and a bunch of tall grass that made Race sneeze. Joey, Marcus, and Finn helped hold the rope, cheering. “Go, Ben, go!” Ben was fast and fearless, using his strong upper body to pull his weak legs behind him, and feeling for footholds wherever he could. 

Charlie wheeled closer to watch, bumping over the gravel. “How...how tall is that thing?” he asked, looking up at Jack. His bangs stuck out from under his blue helmet. 

“35 feet, I think, maybe 40,” Jack said. “But, you only have to go as high as you want to. Or you can help belay and not climb at all.” 

“No, I wanna try,” Charlie said quickly. “I just never done anything like this.” 

Jack hadn’t either until a month ago. “Lots of ways to go up.” Jack said. He held up 3 fingers. “You can climb by yourself like Ben. You can buddy climb, and have someone go with you. Or Jace is gonna do the booty bag.” 

“Booty bag?” 

“Yeah.” Jack pointed to a yellow hammock-like seat waiting near the wall. “You sit in it and you can propel with a hand crank, or just have them lift you as high as you want. You don’t have to use your legs for that one.” 

Charlie nodded. Ben was already almost halfway up; he grabbed onto a platform to rest. “You got it, Ben!” Jack shouted. 

“Take your time, kiddo!” The lead belayer called. “You’re doing great!” 

“Who’s going next?” Charlie asked. 

“I don’t know,” Jack said. “Do you want to go?” 

“Will you climb with me?” 

Jack grinned. “Of course I will.” 

Ben’s decent was even faster than his climb up, as the team carefully lowered him back to the ground and helped him resettle in his wheelchair. 

The adventure challenge director, Wyatt, was tall, muscular, and blond, with a huge smile and a bandana under his helmet. 

“Charlie!” He called. “You ready?” 

Charlie wheeled closer to the tower until he was right in front of it. “I guess.” He tilted his head back and looked straight up. 

“You guess?”

“I’m ready,” Charlie said. “Jack’s gonna come with me.” 

“Alrighty, Jack.” He turned to the line of other counselors on the rockwall team. “Get ready for a second climber.” They busied themselves shifting ropes and carabiners. 

Wyatt knelt down next to Charlie. “Can you shake your head yes? Shake your head no?” Charlie did so. His helmet stayed put. “Good! Helmet’s nice and snug.” Wyatt tightened the harness around Charlie’s hips, then clipped the harness to the ropes, patiently explaining every step. Another counselor clipped in Jack. 

Jack smiled. “Ready, kid?” he asked. 

Charlie swallowed hard, then nodded. “Ready as I’ll ever be.” He reached out his hands, and Jack pulled him to his feet and walked him to the wall. Jack hoped the plastic rocks wouldn’t be hot. Everything smelled like wood and dirt; he wondered if Charlie noticed that, too. 

Wyatt and the others took their positions. “Alright, Charlie,” Wyatt called. “Remember your commands?” 

“Um, on belay.” Charlie whispered. 

Jack shook his head. “Louder.” 

“On belay!” 

“Belay is on.” Wyatt echoed. 

“Climbing?” 

“Climb on, Charlie!” 

Charlie let out a slow breath. 

“We’ll go at your pace, kid,” Jack promised. “Reach for that first rock right above your head there. Use your arms.” 

Jack kept his hands on Charlie’s hips as Charlie reached and pulled, pushing up through his stronger left leg. 

“Good!” Jack said. His feet were still on the ground. “Do it again!” 

“You got it, Charlie!” Em called. 

Charlie reached for red hold with his right hand and slowly lifted his right leg. “Don’t let go.” He said. 

“I’m not.” Jack promised. “The harness has got you. Feel it?” Charlie nodded. “I’m right behind you. Now do it again.” 

Charlie took another step with his left leg. Jack’s arms were above his head now. “I have to let go to follow you, Charlie. I’m right behind you.” Jack kept his left hand on Charlie’s foot, grabbed a rock with his right hand, and found himself two footholds that were so small he stood on tiptoe. The harness pulled at his hips and thighs. 

“Go, Charlie, go!” Finn and Joey chanted. “Go, Charlie, go!” 

“You got it, kid,” Jack said. “We got it.” 

Charlie took another step, then another. Jack followed. 

“Good job, Charlie!” Wyatt called. “You’re doing great!” 

Jack glanced down. They were only 10 or 12 feet up; he could still see everyone’s faces clearly. 

Charlie took another shaky step with his right foot. Jack instinctively wrapped his hand around Charlie’s sneaker to give him a boost. Charlie grinned, so Jack did too. 

“Okay, Charlie, you’re doing great!” Wyatt shouted. “But you’re going more sideways than up right now - you’ll run out of wall on your left soon. Try to go straight up.” 

Jack looked. Charlie’s left side was stronger, so they’d been veering left. “We’re doing great, kid,” Jack said. “See that red rock right above your head there? Reach nice and tall with your right hand. I got you.” 

Charlie reached. Jack followed, pushing with his legs. Sweat dripped down the back of his neck between his shoulder blades and itched inside his socks. The helmet was hot, and he wished he had sunglasses. 

They had a rhythm now. Charlie reached and pulled, with Jack’s comforting hand on his right leg or foot. Then Charlie paused, searching for his next hand hold while Jack followed a step behind. Again. Again. 

“Almost to the first platform,” Jack said. 

“Wait,” Charlie said. He gripped the wall. His knees were shaking. 

“You okay?” Jack put his hand on Charlie’s back. 

“We’ve got you, Charlie!” Wyatt called. “Let the harness catch you. Take a rest.” 

“Take a break,” Jack repeated. “Stay where you are.” 

Charlie took a deep, shaky breath. Then another. “Jack?” He said. 

“Yeah?” 

“This...the rock wall...is a new place. It smells like wood.” 

Jack laughed. “I thought the same thing!” 

Charlie laughed, too. He cautiously removed a hand from the rock he was holding and flexed his wrist. “My legs hurt,” he said. 

Jack looked up. “We can be done if you want to,” he said. “But we’re, like, _three steps_ from the first platform. Think we can make it there?” 

“Yeah,” Charlie said. 

“Yeah?” 

Charlie nodded. 

“We’re going for the first platform!” Jack shouted to the crowd on the ground. 

The others chanted: _Char-lie! Char-lie! Char-lie!_

Jack blocked them out. Charlie reached for another hold, and pushed up through his strong left leg. “Good!” Jack prompted. “Again!” 

_Char-lie! Char-lie! Char-lie!_

Jack grabbed Charlie’s right foot and guided it to a rock. His tight muscles were starting to seize up. 

“One more nice big step, Charlie, and we’ll be there.” Jack said. “You’re doing great.” His shirt was almost stuck to him now. The harness pulled again as he stepped. 

The edge of the wooden platform was in reach. “Okay, kid, get your arms up there, and let the rope help you.” 

Charlie reached his left arm, then his right and gripped the wooden edge. His left foot was on a tiny step, the kind that Jack could only brush with his toes. “Alright, good, careful.” Jack said. 

His foot slipped. Charlie yelped, dangling midair. Jack fumbled for him, but he was just out of reach. 

“You’re okay, Charlie!” Wyatt shouted. “We’ve got you! You are not going to fall!” 

“I’m done!” Charlie cried. “Jack, I’m done!” 

The boys had stopped chanting. 

“You’re okay, kid,” Jack said. His heart was pounding. 

“Charlie, I need you to relax!” Wyatt called. “Lean back nice and easy, let the harness hold you.” Charlie did. “Good job. Can you grab the rope with both of your hands?” He did. “Good job. I’m gonna lower you down now. We’re right here.” 

Jack braced his own feet against the wall and watched as Charlie was lowered slowly to the ground. He got smaller and smaller - they’d made it almost halfway up. Emily met Charlie at the base of the platform and helped him get back in his wheelchair. 

“Ready, Jack?” His belayer called. Jack leaned backwards into the tension of the harness as he was lowered to the ground. _Faster, dammit._ He thought. 

The team unhooked him, and started hooking up Finn, the next climber. Jack ran to the shelter house, where Charlie sat in his wheelchair next to the rows of equipment. 

“Hey!” Jack said. He knelt down in front of Charlie, who wasn’t crying, but looked like he had been, or was about to. “Way to go!” 

“What? That was awful!” 

Jack sighed, undid his helmet, and tucked it under his arm. “Yeah, we fumbled it at the end there,” he said. “But other than that it was amazing.” 

Charlie crossed his arms and looked away. 

Ben came up the path. “Good job, Charlie!” he shouted. 

Jack grinned. “Pretty _awesome_ for a first ever climb, right?” He ran a hand through his hair, and put his helmet on the ground. “Let’s get some water.” 

“C’mon,” Ben said. “Let’s go belay for Finn.” 

Charlie looked over his shoulder at Jack. Jack nodded. Then he uncrossed his arms and reached for the wheels of his chair. “Okay,” he said. “Show me how.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rock climbing/zip lining creates some of the BEST camp moments!! I could tell a million stories of kids who did things they never thought possible. Stay tuned - next chapter is ALL Katherine :)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the love on the rock-climbing chapter! My camp is fully accessible--one of the only places in the country that kids with full-time breathing equipment can zip line--so I saw some pretty special moments!

**Wednesday**

Their canoe crashed into the dock for a third time. 

“Cr-ash!” Joey laughed as the water splashed into his lap. Jack and Charlie groaned impatiently. 

Kat came to the edge of the dock and used her red buoy to push them back. “Looks like we need to learn how to steer,” she said. 

“Ouch!” Jack’s hand flew to his chest in mock offense. 

“Ouch!” Joey echoed. 

“Don’t come over here again.” 

Jack looked over Joey’s head and caught Katherine’s serious gaze. “Don’t you like us?” he said. “You been with us at the pool, the dining hall, and now this. You following me?” 

The boys giggled. 

Kat rolled her eyes. “Don’t flatter yourself, Kelly.” She gave the canoe another shove. “Now get out there and get paddling.”

It wasn’t Jack’s fault that he’d never been in a canoe before, or that Charlie had said he wanted to help steer then chickened out. He turned to look over his sunburned shoulder. 

“What?” Charlie said. 

Katherine stood on the dock in her tight bathing suit, watching the canoes with her sunglasses propped on top of her head. She caught Jack staring and shook her head. “Be careful, boys!” She called. 

He took the boys a few more laps around the shimmering man-made lake until his arms gave out. “Guys, let’s go get some water and find something else to do, yeah?” 

Joey pointed at the fishing dock, where Race and Marcus sat catching nothing. Jack paddled the canoe up to shore, bumping over the rocks and sand. “Don’t stand up yet,” he warned. He hopped out into the knee-deep shallows and drug the boys out of the water, parking the canoe next to Charlie’s waiting wheelchair. 

Katherine appeared behind him. “Have fun?” She smiled, and held out her hand to help Joey out. 

“Yeah,” Charlie said, fumbling to take off his life jacket. “It was fine. I wanna swim some more. Can I have my crutches?” 

Katherine unclipped Joey’s life jacket. Jack lifted Charlie out of the canoe and handed him his crutches off the back of his chair. “Careful, kid,” he said immediately. It was hard for him to walk on the soft, uneven sand. 

“I’m gonna go back up to the sidewalk,” Charlie said and started slowly up the beach. Joey ran past him, looking for a counselor who would take him fishing. 

Jack unclipped his lifejacket and handed it to Kat. “When’s your paperwork today?” he asked. “Paperwork” was staff code for break. When someone went off for their two hours a day of rest, they told the kids they were going to do paperwork. 

“Right after lunch,” Kat said. They followed the boys to the sidewalk. 

Jack grinned. “Hey, mine too. How ‘bout that?” 

“Oh,” Kat turned from him to drape the lifejackets on the railing. “How ‘bout that?” 

Well that sounded stupid once she repeated it. “Meet me at my cabin at 2?” he asked. 

“Make it 2:30,” Kat said. “Gimme time to wash the beach off.” 

“Deal.” 

“Jack!” Jace shouted from where he was sitting in the sand. “Come here!”

“We’re gonna bury you!” Finn laughed. 

“2:30.” Jack repeated and gave Kat another crooked grin as he ran towards the boys.

Jack usually spent his breaks savoring the only alone time he got each day: sleeping, doodling, playing on his phone when he could get a bit of service. But today he showered quickly, put on a clean t-shirt, and waited. 

Katherine walked up the porch at 2:32 with her freshly-washed hair piled in a high bun and carrying two popsicles. “Hey.” She smiled. “Orange or blue raspberry?” 

Jack took the blue raspberry one. They were the cheap, colorful sugar-water kind with the plastic tube that could cut your mouth. “You steal these out of the nurses’ fridge?” It tasted like childhood. 

They went into the cabin and sat down at the table, where a half-finished game of Monopoly was sprawled out. “It’s not stealing,” she said. “We’re allowed to have them, too.” She pushed a chunk of orange ice into her mouth. 

“Do you have to go back to the beach after this?” 

She shook her head. “I’m meeting my cabin at music,” she said. “You?” 

“They’re at...art, right now, I’m pretty sure. I’m meeting them at basketball.” He took another bite of his popsicle. So cold his teeth hurt. “And a bunch of my kids are on a wheelchair basketball team, so I’m sure I’ll lose.” 

“Hey, campers first.” She chuckled, repeating one of the camp mantras. 

“Don’t mean I can’t be competitive.” 

“Looks like you’re already a pretty competitive cabin.” She gestured to the Monopoly board.

Jack groaned. “The boys drug that out when it rained this morning. Ever broken up an argument about Monopoly before the sun’s even up?”

“You’re making me happy I have the teenagers.” Kat finished her popsicle and laid the sticky wrapper on the table. 

“You like guarding?” he asked. 

“Yeah,” she said. “It gets a little boring, but boring is a good thing when you’re a lifeguard. The beach is a new thing for me, so that’s harder. I’ve worked at a pool forever.” 

“Really?” 

“I got my lifeguard training when I was 16, because I wanted to work at a water park,” she said. “My dad was pissed.” 

“Why?” 

“He a lawyer. He wanted me to come intern for him like my sisters did in high school.” 

“Oh. You didn’t want to?” 

“And be stuck behind a desk all summer? No, thanks.”

“Well was the water park fun?” 

She shrugged. “Not as much fun as I thought it’d be. Mostly yelling at kids, and yelling at adults to watch their kids, but I stayed for 3 summers.” 

Jack nodded. 

“What about you?” Kat asked. 

He swallowed the last cold bite of his popsicle. “What about me?” 

“Where are you from? What do your parents do?” 

_Nowhere and nothing, because they’re dead._ Jack thought. “I’m from all over,” he said, and that was partially true. “So, how’d you end up here? Got tired of the waterpark?” 

“Needed an adventure,” she said. “And a place to live that wasn’t my parents’, honestly.” 

Jack nodded. He spent his weekends sleeping on Race’s couch or in his old bedroom at Medda’s. “I feel that.” 

“You know what Caroline told me?” Kat said suddenly. “That lake has sewage in it.” 

Jack’s nose wrinkled up. “No way. That’s gotta be a myth.” 

“Honest,” Kat said. “She said they had to shut the whole beach down for a week last summer after a bunch of lifeguards got sick.” 

“Well, thanks for ruining my summer.” 

The conversation flowed easier now. They both admired the nursing team and the art teacher, but were annoyed by the music teacher’s attitude. Kat’s cabin full of teenage girls was less drama than she’d expected, and she’d gotten pretty good at making friendship bracelets. Jack told her about climbing the rock wall with Charlie. 

Jack was 18, and getting ready to start classes at a community college. For what he had no idea. Kat was 20, and a budding journalist at some fancy private university. Jack’s head spun as she rattled off her clubs, ambitions, and accomplishments; camp seemed to just be another addition to the list. 

“Ooh, a smart girl,” he said. “I admire smart girls.” 

Kat smiled. Her teeth were perfect and white. “You know what?” she said. 

“What?” 

“The sorority and the honor society? I don’t give a shit about any of it. It’s just...just what my parents want,” she said. Their chairs had inched closer together without either of them realizing. “None of that matters. Not like this does.” 

“No,” Jack said. His sticky finger tips found her hand. “Nothing has been like this summer.” 

She kissed him first, and she tasted like sugar and sunscreen. 


End file.
